Leominster, MA Outdoor Lighting: Dark Sky Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Cutoff angle limit
- Under 76 degrees from fixture
- Residential curfew
- No obtrusive light 10 p.m.-dawn
- Pole height cap
- 24 feet in business districts
- Applies to
- New construction, nonresidential sites
- Enforcing agency
- Director of Inspections
- Penalty
- Up to $300 per day, per violation
Summary
Leominster's zoning ordinance requires new outdoor lighting on nonresidential and commercial sites to be shielded and angled so light stays on the property. Fixtures need a cutoff angle under seventy-six degrees, and any light near a residential lot must go dark from 10 p.m. to dawn. Business-district fixtures also face a 24-foot pole height cap.
62.2Outdoor lighting. In the area of new construction, outdoor lighting, including lighting on the exterior of a building or lighting in parking areas, must be arranged to minimize glare and light spilling over to neighboring properties. Except for low-level intensity pedestrian lighting with a height of less than eight feet, all outdoor lighting must be designed and located so that:62.2.1The luminaire has an angle of cutoff (as measured from the fixture down to the ground) less than seventy-six degrees; and62.2.2A line drawn from the height of the luminaire along the angle of cutoff intersects the ground at a point within the development site. On sites abutting residential properties, there must be no obtrusive lighting from 10:00 p.m. to dawn. ... 63.1.3Lighting standards.63.1.3.1Any outdoor lighting fixture newly installed or replaced must be shielded so that it does not produce a strong, direct light beyond the property boundaries.63.1.3.2No light standard may be taller than twenty-four feet.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 24).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 2 sets Leominster's outdoor-lighting standard for nonresidential site plan review: on any site undergoing new construction and subject to planning board site plan approval, exterior building lighting and parking-area lighting must be arranged to minimize glare and light spilling over to neighboring properties. Except for low-level pedestrian lighting under eight feet tall, every fixture must have a cutoff angle, measured from the fixture down to the ground, of less than seventy-six degrees, and the point where a line drawn along that cutoff angle strikes the ground must fall inside the development site itself, not on a neighbor's land.
and dawn. Sec. 3, which layers additional standards onto projects in the BA, BB, C, MU1, MU2 and overlay business districts, goes further: any outdoor fixture that is newly installed or replaced must be shielded so it produces no strong, direct light beyond the property boundaries, and no light standard anywhere in those districts may stand taller than twenty-four feet. Both sections sit inside the site plan approval standards, so they attach whenever a nonresidential or multi-family project triggers site plan review under Sec. 22-57, not as a freestanding citywide lighting code covering every residential yard light.
Violations & Fines
Failure to meet the cutoff-angle, shielding or 24-foot height standard is enforced by the director of inspections through the zoning ordinance's general penalty, Sec. 22-15: up to $300 per violation, with each day of continued violation a separate offense, or a noncriminal ticket schedule of $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second and $300 for a third. The Superior Court also has authority to enjoin violations under Sec. 22-7.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Leominster require dark-sky fixtures citywide?
How tall can a parking-lot light pole be?
What happens if a business installs unshielded lighting?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Leominster
Compare Leominster to another location·View the Massachusetts outdoor lighting overview
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